What A Grass Is & Was Archie One In MobLand?
Warning: Major spoilers ahead for episodes 1 and 2 of MobLand
The first episode of Paramount+’s new gangster crime drama MobLand ended with an unexpected murder, although if the victim was what Conrad Harrigan called “a grass”, it could have been the right business decision. Episode 2 of MobLand saw the mystery around the disappearance of Tommy Stevenson deepen and revealed Bella Harrigan and Harry Da Souza may have their own schemes. At the same time, Harry was hauled in by the police in connection with the death of Archie Hammond, the best friend and loyal associate of Conrad Harrigan.
While Harry didn’t kill Archie, the fact that he was actually questioned about something that happened in front of the Harrigans and no one else implies that there could be a leak within the crime family’s inner circle. Given his behavior the night he was killed, Archie Hammond certainly seems like he could have been disloyal to the Harrigans in some way. Following his release from police custody, Harry Da Souza shared his suspicions with Conrad, causing the Irish patriarch to label him as “a grass”, which could require some explanation for those unfamiliar with U.K. slang.
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The new Pierce Brosnan and Tom Hardy crime thriller TV show, MobLand, has just broken a streaming record for Paramount+ with its premiere.
A Grass Is A Snitch Or Informant
It’s A Slang Term Used In The U.K.
Over time, the term “grass” has become widely used to represent any person who snitches. It’s another iteration of the term “rat”, or “fink”, with a strong negative connotation that implies the person betrayed the confidence of someone close to them for their own benefit, safety or gain. These terms are especially common in movies and TV related to crime, with the rats usually betraying their comrades to an enemy, whether it’s a rival, police, FBI, etc. The use of “grass” in MobLand is not quite so general, as it’s used to refer specifically to someone who’s a police informant.
Another possible origin for the term “grass” in a snitching context could reach back much farther than the 20th century; the notion of “whispering grass” that tells a person’s secrets originated in the myths of King Midas in Ancient Greece.
The origin of the term is, as with most slang, unknown, but there are several possibilities. The most convincing makes it a product of U.K. “rhyming slang”, in which the speaker uses a word that rhymes with what they actually mean. For example, “apples and pears” instead of “stairs.” In the instance of “grass”, the common rhyme for the old-school term “copper” (police officer) was “grasshopper”, meaning if you called someone a grass, you were really calling them a copper. There are other potential origins, but given that this term was popularized in the 1930s, the rhyming slang makes sense.
Was Archie Really A Grass In MobLand?
He Certainly Acted Suspiciously The Night He Was Killed
The fact that Harry was brought in to the police station in connection with Archie’s death means one of two things: either someone who saw Archie get killed relayed that information to the police, or the police became suspicious when Archie didn’t return to check in with them if he was an informant. It goes without saying that Conrad Harrigan trusts his own blood first and foremost. Only a few other associates, like Harry and O’Hara (the family lawyer), have achieved a similar level of trust.
It’s possible Maeve manipulated her husband Conrad in order to get Archie off the board for her own reasons.
Therefore, the notion of a Harrigan snitching wouldn’t seem realistic to anyone, which yields Harry’s belief that Archie was a grass. It was certainly suspicious that he sued for peace with the Stevensons, which is what prompted Conrad to kill him in the first place. However, the very idea that Archie could be disloyal was sparked by Maeve, who seemed dead-sure that was the case, or at least wanted Conrad to believe it. Archie seemed genuinely surprised about Maeve and Conrad’s suspicions, so it’s possible Maeve manipulated Archie off the board in MobLand for her own reasons.
